For the past 16 years, the Hawaii Tobacco Prevention and Control Trust Fund has helped to reduce disease and death in the state. The Trust Fund, which is managed by Hawaii Community Foundation (HCF) under a contract with the Department of Health, utilizes a portion of Hawaii’s share of the 1999 multistate class action settlement with the tobacco industry. A multifaceted, statewide approach to tobacco control includes the Hawaii Tobacco Quitline (1-800-QUIT-NOW), community grants for smoking cessation and youth prevention on all islands, tobacco-related and public education and advocacy to reduce the harmful impacts of smoking for Hawai‘i’s people.

Hawaii’s community investments are yielding impressive results:• High school smoking rates decreased 66% from 1993 to 2015.• Adult smoking rates decreased 28% from 2000 to 2014 tobacco-related deaths due to heart disease (34%), stroke (44%), and lung cancer (10%).• Hawaii’s overall 14.1% smoking rate is one of the lowest in the nation.

However, many serious challenges remain:• 1,200 people die each year in Hawaii due to cigarette smoking.• 143,000 Hawaii adults currently smoke cigarettes, costing the state $526 million in medical costs annually.• In a 2015 survey, 26.3% of middle school and 45.1% of high school students said they had ever used an e-cigarette.This is a 640% increase in middle school and a 440% increase in high school compared to 2011 rates.

The Trust Fund supported the grassroots community advocacy that led to the passage of the new Age21 law last year, positioning Hawaii as the first state in the nation to prohibit the sale and possession of cigarettes and e-cigarettes by anyone under age 21. HCF is proud to work with the Department of Health, the Legislature, and many communities partners statewide to achieve more results like these in the future.

“Our partnership to save lives from tobacco-related diseases is dwarfed by the tobacco industry’s relentless spending to increase the use of nicotine everywhere.” Tom Matsuda, HCF Program Director